Pictures of You : A catharsis
by T.J. Wise
Summary: Takes place between S4 E18 and E19. It's for those of us that are not OK with the way Elena toys with Stefan and, especially, Damon's feelings. So here is a one shot to iron out some lingering frustrations. WARNING: Some swearing D/E/S


**AN: In theory this happens after Season 4, Episode 18 and before Episode 19.**

**I was StElena shipper once, I am a die hard DElena shipper, but above all else, I'm a Damon shipper. Therefore I confess that I am fed up with the way Elena messes up with Stefan and, especially, Damon's feelings. That last scene in American Gothic just made me want to slap her. **

**So here is a one shot to let out some steam. No happy endings, no lemons, but lots of snark :)**

**Enjoy!**

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**_Previously on The Vampire Diaries:_**

_"So what's your point Damon?" - a weary Stefan asks his brother as they stand arguing on a badly lit NYC street._

_"The point is: I am sorry. Ok?" - Damon pleads - "I had a moment of weakness Stefan!" - Damon admitted looking away - "**It's my thing**."_

_Stefan looked at him curiously not feeling at all sympathetic._

_"Just like you and I falling for the same girl. **It's our thing**." - Damon argued ._

_Stefan scoffed derisively._

_"**Was** our thing."- Stefan replied soberly and that caught Damon's attention -"Look, we've been making the same mistakes for a 150 years. We can judge Katherine all we want but we keep repeating our own history just like she is. **Nothing** ever changes. **It has to stop Damon**." - Stefan entreated._

_"What are you talking about?" - Damon asked confused._

_"**I'm done**. I can't keep reliving my life like this. I owe Elena her shot at being normal again. Once we give her the cure I am getting her out of my life and getting a life of my own."_

_Realization hit Damon like a ton of bricks. This could be it, this could be the moment he lost his brother for good._

_"Ok..."- he replied cautiously trying to appease his younger brother -"Ok. Let's just get the cure and we will talk about you riding off into the sunset."_

_*** next flashback scene***_

_"You know I don't want the cure." -Elena argued with the two men sitting at the grimy cafe table with her - "You know I don't and I am done talking about it. So either you accept that and let me be who I am **or not**."_

_Damon looked at his brother and then back at woman he loved and chose levity._

_"Yeah... no." - he said with a smirk._

_Elena was not surprised. She had expected them to react this way._

_"Elena, this isn't you." - Stefan kindly pleaded._

_"It is now and you two really need to accept it." - she said through gritted teeth - "If you don't, there will be consequences." - the tension rolled of her in waves._

_*** enter long winded, heart felt plea from Stefan begging Elena to reconsider and a hissy fit from Elena where she snaps the waitress neck to prove her point ***_

_As the dead body of the waitress crashed to the floor Elena leveled her gaze at the brothers._

_"Like I said: **consequences**." - she said flatly -"That's one body you are responsible for. If you keep trying to fix me there will be a second, a twentieth and a hundredth. That's your choice"_

* * *

A day later, Damon and Stefan managed to track the cure down. To no one's surprise it also meant that, as they knocked at the door of a foreclosed property in the middle of suburbia, they were met with a known face.

When Elijah opened the door he didn't seem surprised either at finding the brother's on the other side.

"I must say, your persistence is heart warming." - he declared as he gesture for Damon and Stefan to come in.

"And here I though that suburbia would be offensive to your gentile upbringing." - Damon returned the sarcasm.

"It was an adequate meeting point to resolve the pending issues."

Damon looked at Stefan and his younger brother motioned for him to continue.

"And that would be?"- Damon asked with a smirk.

"An immortal that wants the cure for himself so he can die and raise the dead; a younger brother who's been threatened if he doesn't deliver and a younger sister that is begging me to give it to her."

"Oh yes. Younger siblings can be a real pain in the ass."- Damon joined in and Stefan just rolled his eyes.

Elijah's response died in his lips when an angry screech was heard from further down the house. On instinct, all three vampires rushed to the source of the noise, what they found left them speechless.

Elena was holding a juice carton high up and just out of the reach of Katherine's clawing hands, as the older vampire cursed and shoved at her to give the juice back.

"Oh yes." - Elijah spoke whilst inspecting his nails - "There is also the pending issue of our ex-girlfriends."

Rebecca huffed in annoyance and hopped off the balcony, striding purposely towards the doppelgangers and snatching the carton out of Elena's hands and placing it on the counter.

"I swear it is like baby sitting a pair of harpies!" - she mumbled and turned to look at the Salvatore brothers -"And what are you two doing here?" - she asked in a boring tone, making Elena and Katherine finally realize they were there."

"Oh lokee here Stefan."- Damon quipped - "It's a bitch convention." - he smirked as the three vampire girls started throwing him death glares -"We have the original bitch, the Queen bitch and the bitch in training."

"Shut up Damon!" - the girls replied in chorus and the men had to resist the urge to guffaw.

"And there is is Stefan,"- Damon continued his tirade - "That awkward moment when your ex-girlfriend meets your ex-girlfriend and your ex-ex-girlfriend and they all realize they slept with you **and** our brother at one time or another."

Elijah raised an amused eyebrow and Stefan kept his eyes firmly on the floor.

"That's enough Damon." - Elena bit out as she came to stand mere inches from his face.

Now Damon did guffaw.

"_Or what?_" - he quipped amused as Elena looked at him infuriated -"No. Wait. Let me guess." - he tapped his index finger on his mouth -"You are going to snap more necks or, worse" - he raised his hands up to add drama - "You are going to take your offer of loving me off the table." - he presented in snide.

"Damon..." - Elena started in warning but was silenced when he grabbed her chin aggressively.

"Don't you _Damon_ me little girl." - He hissed and Elena's eyes grew wide -"We are done being your play things." - he spat, his hold tightening painfully on her jaw as tears escaped her eyes.

Damon showed no mercy and not even Stefan seemed to be moved by her pain. Katherine looked on with her mouth agape, Rebecca and Elijah only looked politely interested.

"Understand this Elena." - Damon seethed, looking intently into her eyes -"We want _nothing_ from you. We want _nothing_ with you. Stef and I decided to be a bit more selective with who we love and fuck from now on." - Elena gasped and looked at him terrified - "We are _done_ with you. So your treats mean _shit_ little girl."

Damon shoved her away with his last word and, surprisingly, Katherine came to Elena's side as she rubbed her aching Jaw. The younger vampire looked as if she was in shock as Katherine pulled her over to the sink to clean the bloody trails Damon had left on her face.

The man in question turned to Elijah with a winning smile.

"So Elijah my dear fellow. As I am sure you understand, my brother and I are very invested in avoiding having everyone we ever killed come back from the dead." - Damon's smile broadened - "So as long as your intention is to keep that cure away from Sillas..."

"It is." - Elijah said curtly.

"Then we are here at your service old man." - Damon unceremoniously patted Elijah's arm on the way out towards the front door - "So don't be a stranger."

The brothers didn't waste a glance on the other occupants of the room before leaving. Elena was still looking like a statue, eyes wide and mouth agape. As she watched Damon retreat she let out a quiet broken cry.

"Damon!"

When he didn't look back she blurred to follow him but was stopped at the kitchen archway by Elijah's steady hand. She looked up at him with big brown puppy eyes, waiting fro the words of wisdom he was sure to gift her with.

With an icy calmness Elijah spoke.

"Seems like you haven't been listening to your own advice Elena." - he said without mercy and looked up to lock eyes with Katherine - "Nobody likes a bitch that toys with their heart."

Elena took a sharp breath intake. That her friend Elijah was kicking her when she was down was almost too much to bear. Then she remembered Damon and she willed her body to rush to the front of the house.

When Elena arrived in the front yard, there were no signs of the Salvatore brothers.

"Damon..." - she whimpered wrapping her arms around herself.

"For what is worth,"- Katherine's steady voice broke the silence - "I don't think he means it."

"What if he does?" - Elena asked in a little voice.

"Then you will survive it." - Katherine placed a supportive hand on Elena's shoulder - "We Petrova's always do."

"Why are you being so nice?"- Elena asked stifling a sob.

"Maybe I am just tired of being a bitch..."- Katherine shrugged.

.

.

.

Miles away, Stefan parked Damon's car in front of the Boarding House. His brother sat morosely at his side looking worn and beaten down.

"You did the right thing Damon." - Stefan pleaded.

Damon chuckled without humor -"Did I?"

"She will not snap out of it if we keep coddling her." - Stefan argued.

"But she almost broke Stefan..." - Damon said in a sad tone -"What if I broke her? Us? For good?" - he looked up at his younger brother with a pained expression.

Stefan took in a deep breath. It wasn't easy for him to see his brother broken like this.

"Then at least we know we have done everything we could to bring her back to normal."- Damon nodded without conviction - "And that will have to suffice brother."

"I know..." - Damon acquiesced defeated as he stepped out of his car and walked gloomily into the house.

As Stefan watched his older brother go, he prayed to whoever would listen that the trauma of loosing Damon would flip Elena's emotional switch back on. Otherwise, his ride into the sunset with his brother was about to get a lot more bloodier than expected.

~ THE END ~

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**AN:I have no illusions that this will happen in the next chapter. But I personally needed Elena to get a quick in the but and realize what a pain she has become... Hope you enjoyed it. Please review and let me know what you think. xoxo**


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